Quote for the Day

The Brothers Grimm, in the introduction to the second edition of their fairy tale collection, on the subject of stories, censorship and Thinking of the Children:

...[I]t has been noted that this or that might prove embarrassing and would be unsuitable for children or offensive (such as the naming of certain situations and relations -- there are those who do not even want them to hear bad things about the devil) and that parents might not want to put the book into the hands of their children. That concern might well be appropriate in certain cases, and then one can easily choose selections. On the whole, it is really unnecessary. Nature itself is our best witness, for she has let these flowers and leaves grow in these colors and shapes. Whoever fails to find them right for certain needs, unknown to nature, can pass right by them, but ought not to demand that they therefore be colored and cut in a different fashion. To put it another way: rain and dew benefit everything on earth. Whoever is afraid to put plants outside because they are too delicate and could be injured, instead preferring to moisten them indoors can hardly demand an end to the rain and dew.

No particular point there. I just happened to encounter this bit while reading The Annotated Brothers Grimm, liked both the sentiment and the analogy, and wanted to preserve it.